Subject verb agreement simply means the subject and verb must agree in number. This means both need to be singular or both need to be plural.

Subject/Verb Agreement Examples

Here are some examples of subject verb agreement (the subject is bolded and the verb underlined):

My dog always growls at the postal carrier.

Basketballsroll across the floor.

I don't understand the assignment.

These clothesare too small for me.

Peter doesn't like vegetables.

Compound Subjects

Compound subjects (two subjects in the same sentence) usually take a plural verb, unless the combination is treated as singular in popular usage or the two subjects refer to the same thing or person. Here are some examples of subject verb agreement with compound subjects:

When using "or" or "nor" in a compound subject containing a singular and plural subject, the verb agrees with the closest subject. Examples of compound subjects using or, neither-nor, or either-or include:

My mom or dadis coming to the play. (singular)

Neither gray nor whiteis my favorite color. (singular)

Either Grandpa or my sistersare going to the park. (closest subject is plural)

Either my sisters or Grandpais going to the park. (closest subject is singular)

Neither she nor Iam going to college. (closest subject is singular)

Singular Indefinite Pronouns

Here are some examples of subject verb agreement with singular indefinite pronouns:

Eachgets a trophy for playing.

Somebodywill pay for this.

Anybodyis more fun than you.

Somethingis very wrong here.

Everybodyenjoys a good book.

Nothinghas been determined as of yet.

Plural Indefinite Pronouns

Here are some examples of subject verb agreement with plural indefinite pronouns:

Bothare qualified for the job.

Manywent to the beach and got sunburned.

Fewknow what it really takes to get ahead.

Severalare already on location.

Some sugar is required for taste. (sugar is uncountable so singular verb used)

Most of the cookies were eaten. (cookies are countable so plural verb used)

Midsentence Phrase or Clause

Here are some examples of subject verb agreement with a phrase or clause between the subject and verb:

A theory of physics ascertains that a body in motion stays in motion.

A virus in all the company's computers is a real threat to security.

The causes of this prevalent disease are bad diet and lack of exercise.

The couch and chair I got at the store look really nice in here.

The members of the choir are very happy with the performance.

Collective Nouns

Collective nouns can be singular or plural depending on meaning. Here are some examples of subject verb agreement with collective nouns:

The committeemeets here every Thursday. (singular)

The crowdis getting angry. (singular)

The juryhas finally reached a decision. (singular)

The majorityrules most of the time. (plural)

The staffhave gone their separate ways for the holidays. (plural)

Inverted Subjects

Here are some examples of subject verb agreement with inverted subjects where the subject follows the verb: